City again prevented from giving 65 Makhaza residents individual toilets

This morning, the City of Cape Town again attempted to re-install and enclose the 65 toilets in the Makhaza area, as it has offered to do for many months, and is now required to do in terms of a court order issued by Judge Nathan Erasmus in the Western Cape High Court last week.

For the fifth time this year, the applicants including members of the ANC Youth League, stopped City staff and contractors from commencing with their work.

They did so despite Judge Nathan Erasmus confirming to the City and their own lawyers last night by email that the Court order requires reinstallation to take place immediately. The City's representative on site was informed by the Advocate acting for Mr Lili (one of the applicants) that he (the advocate) "disagrees" with the Judge's interpretation of his own order.

These actions are in contempt of court. They are not in the interests of the 65 people who are currently using communal toilets in the area, when they could have had their own toilets which the City has repeatedly attempted to install and enclose.

The City is of the opinion that the actions of the applicants, apparently done with the knowledge and consent of their lawyers, are in contempt of the court order and will be advising the court accordingly.

The City's attempts to comply with the court order and ensure the immediate return of the toilets (as well as their enclosures) were deliberately blocked by the applicants including representatives of the ANCYL who did not allow City officials to even speak to residents and inform them of the City's willingness to reinstall and enclose the toilets.

Statement issued by Rulleska Singh, Spokesperson for the Executive Mayor, Cape Town, December 7 2010

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